Tipperary

Landlocked and rural, County Tipperary is Ireland's largest inland county and one renowned for its rich and fertile farmland, raised bogland and the Galtee Mountains in the south.

Tipperary's main industry is beef and diary farming and the flat plain that stretches through the county and into Limerick, known as the Golden Vale, is regarded as some of the best cattle farming land in Ireland. The River Suir flows through the county before reaching the sea at Waterford and many of Tipperary's towns and villages line its banks.

The central area of the county is dominated by raised bogland, particularly Littleton Bog, some 12,000 years old, which splits the county into its two halves. North Tipperary, which is administered from the town of Nenagh, close to Lough Derg and South Tipperary, which is administered from Clonmel, on the border with Waterford.

The main towns of the county are found in the south, these include Tipperary town, Clonmel, Cahir, the central market town of Thurles and Cashel, where you'll find the famous landmark the Rock of Cashel. This impressive 12th Century fortress and abbey stands on a promontory overlooking the surrounding plains, and for more than 1000 years was the main power base for the region.

Also in the south of the county are the Galtee Mountains with one of the most extensive cave systems in Ireland, the Mitchelstown Caves extending for some 2km.

Tipperary is famous in song, from the WWI anthem, It's a long way to Tipperary... ironically, written by an Englishman who had never set foot in Ireland.

Form U.S. President Ronald Reagan's ancestors were from Tipperary and other people with roots in the county include form Australian Prime Minister Ben Chifley and runner Roger Bannister.